


What You Will

by Tian



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Comedy, Crossdressing, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-02
Updated: 2014-07-08
Packaged: 2018-02-03 02:46:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1728257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tian/pseuds/Tian
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Summary: You and your twin were separated when the two of you were very young when your parents divorced. Your twin is a book worm and you’re a basketball lover. Your twin, Futa Kou suggests the two of you secretly apply to the same school, Kaijou High, without letting your feuding parents know. Eager to spend your high school career with your twin, you quickly agree, only to find that there is no girls’ basketball team. So what do you do? The only thing to do when you have a twin and a competitive spirit for basketball! I use the Japanese way of introducing names. ReaderxKasamatsu in the end<br/>Probably going to diverge from canon.</p><p>EDIT: On hold because I started college and I need to get adjusted... Back at the bottom of the hierarchy that I don't follow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: Crossdressing reader and language. This story may be kind of confusing because things make sense in my brain that might not make sense to others… So if something doesn’t make sense ask!  
> I’m really nervous because I’ve held a belief that the internet is a scary place to post things in. And I’m currently just bracing myself for I don’t even know what. I hope you enjoyed it though!

**Prologue ******

********

"He said he’d be waiting by the entrance." You think. You’re wandering around the club fair, looking for your twin brother. It is going to be the first time in a long, long time since the two of you had seen each other. When you were younger, your parents had divorced and split up the two of you. The two of you had purposefully applied to the same school without your parents knowing.

“Join karate!” “Come check out the drama club!” Upperclassmen were yelling at the top of their lungs to try and recruit as many freshmen as possible. You spot your twin leaning on a tree playing on his phone near the boy’s basketball team.

“Kou!” You call out, waving your hand.

“[First]!” He runs up to you and places his hand on your head then on his head. “I think I’m taller.”

“What, we’re exactly the same height! If anything I think I’m taller by a little bit.”

He scoffs and then his expression softens, “I’m sorry.” He shakes his head sadly.

“What? Why are you sorry?” You stare at him, confused.

“There’s no girl’s basketball team in Kaijou.”

Loud squeals and desperate voices interrupt your touching reunion. The two of you turn your head and immediately jump to the side to dodge a crazy herd of girls running at the two of you, coming straight towards the basketball club’s table.

“I want to be the manager for the basketball club!” An innumerable number of girls crowd around the table, burying the actual members and other boys trying to actually join the club. At first you are bewildered by the sudden popularity of being a sports manager and then you spot Kise Ryouta standing behind the table. His hands are up trying to calm the herd of girls. A short black haired sempai sitting behind the seat is frozen like a statue as an excited brown haired boy and a longer black haired boy are also trying to calm the girls.

“Uwoooaaah, CAPTAIN LOOK AT ALL THE GIRLS,” the brown haired boy roars. “THANK YOU FOR THE SUPPORT.” He bows, completely misunderstanding the reason why they want to become the managers.

“It’s finally my time,” the other boy says smiling taking the application papers.

The statue-boy, presumably the captain, snaps awake suddenly. “KISE GO OVER THERE.” He grabs Kise and shoves him away from the table, using him as a sacrifice for the crazy fangirls. Like bees to honey, the girls immediately swarm Kise and surround him. “Sempaaii.” Kise’s voice is soon drowned out.

You sweat drop at the scene, then turn back to your twin facing the problem at hand. “There’s no girl’s team?” You repeat, only to confirm the fact in case you had misheard.

Kou nods his head grimly, “I was about to say you could be a manager, but I think there’s a lot of competition.”

The two of you break away from the crowded area and enter the gym. The floor is shiny and smooth, it has been rewaxed and thoroughly cleaned over the break. You pick up a stray ball and slowly dribble it. Then you suddenly speed up, dribbling it between your legs, fighting an imaginary opponent. “Fake left, then quickly go right. Spin, and she takes a shot! It goes in!! 3 points!” You narrate your actions like an announcer and cheer as the ball goes in with a clean swoosh.

“You could always start a girls team?” Kou suggests, sensing your discontent.

You sigh and rub the back of your head, “I guess I’ll have to.”

“I’m sure it’ll be popular, after all Kise Ryouta does basketball.”

“I don’t want members that aren’t serious about winning.”

“Why don’t you just play on the boy’s team then?” He jokes.

“Kou, Come on be serious.” You turn to look at him and pause. An idea pops into your head and you smile widely. “Kou that’s a great idea! I’ll just play on the boy’s team!”

“What?” He stares at you and then places his hand on your forehead. “I knew you liked basketball, but I didn’t think you’d go crazy if you couldn’t play.”

——-Before Club——-

 

“See, we look exactly alike, no one will be able to tell the difference.”

“Eeeh, they’ll definitely be able to tell… Where’d you get that wig from?”

The two of you are standing in one of the many gym storage rooms. You’re dressed in a t-shirt and shorts with a wig styled like your brother’s hair. You tighten the wig so it fits snugly on your head and shake your head to make sure it won’t fall off. “I snagged it from the drama club. Hide here and read while I go to practice. Don’t let anyone see you okay?”

Kou sighs and pulls his cap over his head, “you better not get caught…” He plops down by the window and immediately begins reading on his phone.

You exit the storage room and head off towards the gym, feeling giddy, you have to stop yourself from doing a weird skip/hop/jog.


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The First Kaijo Practice  
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot in the last chapter but...  
> Characters from Kuroko no Basuke belong to Fujimaki Tadatoshi.

**Chapter 1 ******

********

“I’m Kasamatsu Yukio, Kaijo’s captain and point guard. We’ll start with some brief introductions, tell us your name, grade, position, and if you’re a freshman tell us what middle school you’re from.” He was shorter than most of the other members, but his steel blue gaze showed that he was not to be messed with. You could see he was serious and passionate for basketball.

The players introduce themselves one by one.

“I’m Futa Kou, freshman from XS. I’ve never played a real game of basketball so I have no position.” You say, copying Kou’s voice.

“He’s small…”

“He doesn’t have any real experience??”

“Third stringer.”

The other members murmured. Moriyama-sempai, the team’s shooting guard, scribbled something down. A tick mark forms on your head as you are tempted to just tell them your actual basketball background.

“Quiet!” Kasamatsu shouted, silencing the assuming whispers. “Next.”

“It’s my turn, huh? Alright since you saved the best for last..” The blond kid next to you begins, “I’m Kise Ryouta, freshman! My hobby is basketball and my specialty is karaoke! Ah, I got that backwards.” He jokes lightheartedly as he flashes a thumbs up, you can almost see sparkles. “I’m from Teikou and I’m okay with any position! I also work as a model so I might not be able to make it to practice very often, but I’m looking forward to playing with everyone~”

There’s a small pause and then everyone begins to chatter away, “so that’s the guy from the Generation of Miracles?”

“Cocky.” You mutter.

“Shut up! I only asked for your name, grade, school, and position.” Kasamatsu skillfully kicks Kise in the face. “Answer only what you’ve been asked you shallow little twit!”

You almost start laughing out loud and you quickly turn away.

“Hey, I”m the highly anticipated rookie you guys recruited! What’s with this treatment??” Kise complains, holding his swollen cheek.

“Like I care, you’re still a freshman.when a sempai gives an order a freshman has no right to talkback.”

Kise pauses and stares down at Kasamatsu, smirking. “I don’t really like stiff formalities and the like. What’s so great about being born one or two years earlier? Besides, when it comes to basketball, I’m probably better than you.”

The gym is completely silent, even Hayakawa is flabbergasted by Kise.

Unwavering, Kasamatsu responds firmly. “I’ll tell you what’s so great about it. Before you even factor in being good or bad, this is Kaijō High School’s Basketball Club. It’s not because we were born earlier. The second and third years here have been working hard on this team longer than you have. I’m telling you to have respect for that experience. Doesn’t matter if you’re from the “Generation of Miracles” or anything else. You’re now a freshmen at Kaijo. And I’m a senior here, the captain, Yukio Kasamatsu. Got any complaints?” He says this with so much authority that Kise’s smirk disappears.

Your heartbeat quickens out of excitement. He was the real deal. His speech inspired you to follow him and play with him. “I want to play with him.” You think.

You smile and join the rest of the freshman, “HAI, CAPTAIN.”

“Then for the first practice we’ll do some basic drills and practice games to decide what string you’ll be in.” Kobori announces. The freshmen divide into teams of five, balanced by skill. You are placed in Kise’s team.

"Hahaa… They must think I suck." You sigh to yourself as you slip on a blue pinnie. Your group has been assigned to a mini game as your first test.

An upperclassmen tosses the ball in the air and Kise immediately jumps up and grabs the ball. The other player is no match for him. Without even looking at you or your other teammate, Kise dribbles past the other players and dunks the ball into the hoop. The players on the court are in awe, “As expected of the Generation of Miracles.” Squeals can be heard from the girls peeking in from the entrance of the gym. But they are quickly chased away by a reluctant upperclassman on order from Kasamatsu.

You roll your eyes. “Good job, but you know you have teammates for a reason.”

Opponent A picks up the ball and begins to dribble it across the court. “It’s okay guys, he may be from the Generation of Miracles, but he’s still another freshman!” He encourages his teammates. “Double team him and he won’t be able to do anything.”

As he says that he passes the ball at the player you are guarding, obviously thinking that your inexperience will make you an easy target.

“Don’t underestimate me so blatantly guys.” You mutter as you easily smack the ball away from the relaxed player. Without missing a beat you grab the ball with your other hand and bounce the ball to your left. As soon as he shifts his attention towards that direction, you quickly lift the ball and shoot it into the basket bouncing it off the backboard.

“Nice fake.” Your teammates cheer mildly, but you can tell that they are still mindblown by Kise.

The rest of the mini-game follows along those lines. A combination of Kise’s flashy plays and your fakes ends with an overwhelming victory for your team. The gym is again filled with chatter over Kise and the whole team is excited. “With Kise as our ace we can definitely win all the tournaments!” Was the atmosphere of the team.

By the end of practice Kise has proven to be the best at every single drill, a natural born talent. All the attention is on him.

—————

You slide the storage room door open angrily. A loud slam alarms Kou who was still reading, his phone now plugged in to the wall.

“How was practice?” He asks cautiously.

“EVERYONE IS-” You start yelling.

“Shhhhh. Calm down, there are still students in the building.” Kou puts his finger to his mouth.

“Everyone is fixated on that Kise Ryouta. Even though I played just as well.” You lower your voice to a whisper. “I probably won’t make it to first string because of him. No one paid attention to anyone but him.” Frustrated, you try to touch your hair, then remember that you’re wearing a wig. You slip it off, shaking your head to let your hair fall down, and stuff it into your bag. You don a pair of glasses.

“Since when do you wear glasses?” Kou questions, staring at you.

“I don’t, it’s just for reassurance. It’ll be harder to compare our faces if I’m wearing glasses.”

“….. Let’s go.”

—————

“…. Then Kise Ryouta will be the only new edition to the first string this year.” Coach Takeuchi closes the meeting with the first string members. “The rest of the first years will be split between the second and third strings.”

“Wait, coach. How about Futa Kou? All of his scores are very high, they aren’t much lower than Kise’s and he has good sense.” Kasamatsu interjects. “I was watching their mini game and he scored about the same amount of points as Kise and he made a lot of team plays.”

“Hmmm.” Coach Takeuchi rubs his chin as he looks over the data.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Describing basketball plays is more difficult than I thought it would be. I feel like it makes a lot more sense in my brain. I hope the beginning isn’t too slow… Also, it should be noted that your twin has a different last name from you since divorce happened.


	3. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An early morning encounter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kuroko no Basuke characters belong to Tadatoshi Fujimaki-sensei not me.  
> Many thanks to Kido Tomi for helping with editing and improving the writing!  
> I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, I hope you enjoy!

****Chapter 2 ********

_You’re standing in the Kaijou gym holding a basketball. You are standing in the only spot with ligh shining on it, the rest of the gym is dark. Suddenly, a light shines next to you revealing Hayakawa. “Futa! Is it true you’re actually a girl??” He hollers, spit flying from his mouth. Confused you look down and see that you’re wearing your school uniform._   
_Kobori appears next to him, shaking his head. “Girls aren’t allowed to play with boys.” He grabs the basketball out of your hand and throws it behind him. You reach out your hand to grab the ball, but the ball morphs into Kise’s head._   
_“It’s okay, [Last], we don’t need you. I’m here after all.” Kise’s head taunts you as it bounces away._   
_Your body suddenly turns around and faces Kasamatsu. “[Full], you are no longer a part of the team.” With each word, he seems to grow taller and taller, casting a giant shadow over you. You grab his arm in desperation. But he merely shrugs you off and looks at you with his steel blue eyes, now filled with disappointment. You’re suddenly booted outside of the gym and standing in front of the entrance. You try to enter the gym again but the doors slam shut._

“SENPAI!” You scream, pounding on the door. You open your eyes to find yourself sitting up and grabbing at empty air. Feeling disorientated you sit there for who knows how long. _What was that?_

It was a beautiful morning, the sun was barely above the line of trees off to the east. Although friendly and warm, the spring sun fails to drown out the now fragmented memories of your nightmare. It’s the first day of the second week of school, a week after it was announced that you would be joining the first string along with Kise Ryouta. To be honest, you had been extremely surprised, along with the rest of the members, when the coach had announced your name after Kise’s. There had been a lot of silent complaints since no one saw your true value. After all, you don’t have a flashy skill like Kise’s copycat. Thankfully, no one has vocally protested. Yet. You look at your cell phone, 6:30 AM.

 _Might as well go to school early. Maybe the gym will be unlocked._ You think, stretching your arms upward, you get out of bed and get dressed.  
The school is empty when you get there except for some dedicated teachers and maybe a few students. You hastily change into your slippers and fast walk towards your classroom. Today is the first morning you’ve been to school early. The school looks completely different without the hustle and bustle of its inhabitants. Every step you take reverberates and bounces in front of you. The barren halls give you a sense of security but also leaves an unpleasant aftertaste of solitude.

You reach your classroom and cautiously slide open the door. Empty. _What else was I expecting?_ Your classroom faces the east, allowing the sun, now a good distance above the horizon, to fill up the room with a light orange glow. You place your bag on top of your desk, right next to the window in the middle row. A row ahead and across the room is Kou’s desk. When you had seen Kou’s name on your class list you had jumped for joy, but now him being close to you was a risk of people finding out you were twins. You brush the top of his desk lovingly with your fingers, thanks. With one last look back at your classroom for the year, you slide open the door with the conviction of a soldier going into battle. Satou-sensei, your homeroom teacher, is standing in front of the door with his hand stretched out to open the door with a surprised expression..

“[Last], you’re here early. Since you have nothing better to do, do sensei a favor and take these to the material room.” Smiling, he points to a bunch of maps leaning on top of a box filled to the brim with papers.

“Find someone to help you!” He yells behind him as he walks off towards the staff room, whistling happily from the encounter.

“Find who??” You called after him. _Wait don’t just decide that I have nothing better to do!_   You yell in your brain. The school is completely empty, it was going to be a while before anyone would start coming into the school. You stare blankly at Satou-sensei’s back then at the pile of materials.

“This is power abuse. I just wanted to practice.” You grumble as you pick up the materials. You balance the box carefully in one hand and tuck the rolled up maps under your opposite armpit. _Might as well use this opportunity for training._ You check the surroundings before running as fast as you possibly can while awkwardly balancing the materials in your hands, constantly adjusting your grip to make sure you didn’t drop anything. Just as you’re about to round the corner, Kasamatsu appears into your sight.

 _Senpai??_ Shocked to see someone else in school so early, you ram into him at full speed,rebound off of him and land on your backside. The papers in the box fly into the air and gracefully floating down like sakura in April. The cylinders in your hand escape from your grasp and scatter around you. Your first reaction is to brace yourself to be angrily reprimanded and kicked by Kasamatsu for running in the halls. But then you remember that you are dressed as a girl. _Shit, what if he recognizes me._ You remember your nightmare and freeze. _I haven’t looked up yet, he won’t recognize me if I run away._ Your mind is simulating as many escape routes as possible. _IF I KNOCK HIM OUT-_

“A-a-a-are-”

A stutter interrupts your thoughts, and you momentarily wonder who is talking. You look up to confirm who you crashed into, still Kasamatsu.

“areyouokay?” He finally blurts out, his head is slightly turned to the side and he’s shaking. His short black hair seems to be spiking up more than usual, he looks a lot like a porcupine raring up for a fight. Was he blushing? This was definitely the same person who had been barking orders and kicking Kise during practice. Confused, you blankly stare up at him, your glasses have slipped and are hanging lopsidedly from your nose.

“Kasamatsu-Senpai? Right?” You ask without thinking. Shit.

“E-eh?” He stops shaking and stares at you. His facial expression quickly shifts from “who?” to “am I forgetting someone important??” to “I’m a failure as a senpai” in the span of seconds. Then he suddenly remembers that he has never talked to a girl before and looks even more confused.

“Ah, you’re the basketball team captain right?” You quickly add, covering for your slip up.

The confusion on his face clears up. “Y-yeah.” Embarrassed by his misunderstanding he looks away. There’s a moment of awkward silence and then you begin to pick up the papers. Kasamatsu quietly helps.

“It’s okay senpai, this is my job.” You try to dissuade him from sticking around any longer, not wanting to risk him recognizing you.

“No, as a senpai it’s my job to help out my kouhai.” He replies almost with his usual authority, still looking away.

 _No, please go away._ You wail on the inside. Head down, you scramble to pick up the strewn materials without uttering another word.

“Thank you for helping me.” You thank him, bowing your head you go to pick up the box. Before you can, Kasamatsu dutifully picks it up. “W-where do you need to take these to?” He’s still not looking at you, which is actually good for you. Tempted to take his offer, you bite your lower lip as fragments of the dream float to the surface of your consciousness. You can’t risk being around him, or anyone from the basketball team.

“It’s fine! Really!!” Before he can react, you grab the box out of his hands, scoop up the maps and run away. “Thank you very much senpai!”

You dump the materials on the side of the storage room and check the time, 8:00. Students would be arriving soon, in fact you could hear the first wave of students entering the school gates. “So much for morning basketball.” You sigh. “I have to be more careful in school... Wait a minute, Kasamatsu-senpai is bad with girls. The spartan captain that isn’t afraid of kicking a model in the face is afraid of girls?” You continue to mull over the new discovery as you head back to your classroom.

“Kyaaaa.” You hear loud squeals as you near your classroom.

“Aw fuck no.” You groan aloud. Girls from all years are crowded around the door of the classroom opposite of yours. Kise’s class.

**Chapter 2 Extra **  
****

********Kasamatsu watches you as your scurry off and then turns around to continue his way to the gym. For a couple of steps he seems to have returned to normal but then he stops and leans his head on the wall. _I let a girl carry all that by herself. Wait, that girl ran off carrying all of that by herself._ He turns his head to see Moriyama leering at him from around the corner.

“UWA. Since when have you been there??” Kasamatsu steps backwards, arms out.

“Since ‘as a senpai it’s my job to help out my kouhai’. You’re so cool captain.” Moriyama covers his mouth with his hand, trying really hard to not burst out laughing. “I’m surprised that you lasted so long around a girl, captain. Did you know her?”

“No, I’ve never seen her before.”

“Did you get her name? Come on, she was pretty cute. You did get her name right? Kasamatsu, getting a girl’s name is the basic of the basics of pick-”

“Shut up.” Kasamatsu says before Moriyama can say anything else.

“Wait til I tell the rest of the team what happen to our captain~ Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to fix your fear of girls.” Moriyama snickers.  “Ow,” He yelps from Kasamatsu’s smack to the head.

Moriyama seeing this scene would be the seed of setting Kasamatsu up in a Goukon.


	4. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More of a transition chapter because it felt right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for updating so late, but I'm officially not a high schooler now! Yay! Still not an adult though... To be honest, I kind of felt that this chapter is unnecessary, but it just kind of came out. I'll get better in the future, criticism is very welcome.

**Chapter 3**

 

“He’s so handsome.”

“Go ask him for an autograph.”

Across the hall from your classroom 1-C is Kise’s room, 1-D. The girls are fawning over Kise who is simply sitting at his desk, which is notably also surrounded by his many fans. By now, he’s used to all the attention and is calmly dealing with the excessive attention. Modestly smiling and waving to the girls. A group of irritated boys were sitting in the corner of the classroom glowering at Kise’s immense popularity. The dark aura that they were releasing merely bounced off of Kise’s bright aura. Surprised that the usually tardy model is early to school you try to silently maneuver past the crowd and into your class.

“[First]!” Kou calls from behind. He grabs your shoulders. The nightmare echoes in your mind, you lower your head and glance around.

“Futa-kun.” Emphasizing the syllables of his last name, you turn around with a threatening look on your face.

He sweat drops and quickly corrects himself. “[Last]-san...” He looks down glumly, causing a jolt of guilt to hit you. After all, he had been listening to your selfish request since school started. Originally the two of you had decided to attend Kaijo in order to be together, but since you joined the basketball team you had selfishly decided that it would be better to stay away from each other.

“Sorry, Kou.” You say softly. “Let’s go out to eat together after practice today.” You lightly touch the tips of his fingers with yours and walk into your class. Still looking sad, he shuffles towards the classroom.

“Futa!” Kise, who has somehow managed to make his way through the forest of girls taps Kou lightly on the shoulder to catch his attention.

Futa’s eyes widen by the sudden attention focused on him by everyone around him. His face is clearly wondering why the hell the school’s most popular student talking to him. All the girls who were standing around directed their attention and he could sense a dark aura being directed towards him. He flinches and instinctively looks at you, pleading for your help.

“Why is Kise talking to him?” Many girls are whispering to each other. Futa, within the first week managed to attain the label of ‘that gloomy kid that only reads books’. His fringe was uneven and covered his eyes when he didn’t push them to the side (which he didn’t) and he didn’t bother talking to people that weren’t you. He was especially gloomy these days because he wasn’t allowed to talk to you too much.

“Futa, do you remember me? I’m your teammate, Kise Ryouta.” The blond introduces himself, as if there could be anyone in the school didn’t know who he was. “You’re Futa right?” He stares at Futa, sensing something off about him. He rubs his head, puzzled. Kise’s brilliant aura is making Kou’s eyes swirl. Your twin glances over at you again with a helpless plea. Panicking, you push your arm past the girls encircling the two and try to reach for Kou’s arm.

“Well, whatever. Practice has been boring lately, so I was wondering if you’d like to have a match with me. I heard today the first stringers are going to play against each other to decide who the regulars are, so how about we compete for points? The winner gets the regular position, I think it’s a good chance for you.” He smiles innocently at Kou, but to you it looks like a condescending smirk. Blood rushing to your head, you suddenly find yourself standing next to Kou with your hand placed on Kou’s back.

“Are you that egocentric Kise? There’s no point in having a match for a regular position since we don’t get to choose who gets the position. Even if they did scout you, they might not use you since you don’t practice as much with all your modeling work. The coach will choose the players that deserve the positions and if I, if Kou isn’t chosen then that just means he has to train harder. Basketball isn’t that easy, someone will take your spot if you don’t work hard to keep it. ”

Before Kise can say anything, you drag Kou into your classroom. Extremely confused by your appearance, Kise stares at your back blankly thinking, _who? Friend? His girlfriend?? She called him by his first name just now didn’t she?_

You slam your hand onto the desk causing your classmates to flinch. “Who does that bastard think he is.” You glare at at Kou. “Just because he’s part of the Generation of Miracles and a model doesn’t mean he can go around acting like he’s on top of the world.”

“Calm down, [First]. Besides, I think you just blew our cover.” His hands are up in a sad attempt to pacify your irritation and a complacent grin is stuck on his face. You can tell he’s happy that the facade is over.

“Tch, I blew a week’s worth of pain and suffering.” You groan, rub the back of your head and then plop your chin down on the desk so you’re staring up at Kou. _Well it’s fine as long as no one finds out we’re twins._ A bit glad that there is no longer a reason to pretend to be strangers you suddenly smile and simply say, “Kou.” He smiles back knowingly and for a moment the two of you sit there smiling at each other, oblivious to the whispers of your classmates.

 

**-Practice-**

 

As usual, you are the first one to enter the gym. After all, you came straight from the storage room where Kou was hiding in. You take your usual position by the entrance to the gym so you can mingle with the rest of the members as they walk in. As usual, the second one to step into the gym is Kasamatsu, followed by the rest of the members. Abnormally punctual today, Kise steps into the gym right behind Kasamatsu. He is blabbering away to another member when he notices you, he excuses himself from the conversation and walks over to where you are standing.

“Yo, Futa!” The usual smile is pasted on his face. As he moves into the gym, audible screams can be heard from the mezzanines encircling the gym. Kasamatsu’s attempts to barricade the gym from Kise’s dedicated fans had failed. After three days of continually ordering someone else to chase the girls away he had been forced to confront them himself. Standing three feet away from them, he had tried his best to discourage all of them. “Leave, you’re disturbing our practice” had turned into a pitiful “P-p-please l-lea-” before petrifying when the mob of girls disregarded him and rushed forward to cheer for Kise.

You pretend to not hear him, hoping he will go away. “How mean. Are you mad about this morning?” His face falls sadly as he attempts to guilt you with a pout. “I was just trying to have some fun with my fellow teammate.” You try remember Kou’s wise words. “Keep a low profile, don’t cause trouble. Try to be nice.” _Be nice, be friendly. Be friendly._ You repeat in your mind.

He sticks his face right in front of yours to magnify his puppy face. You instinctively starfish his model face with your hand and push his face to the side. He lands melodramatically, using his left hand for support and his right is holding his face. “Futa, so mean.” He cries.

“Don’t come near me, I’ll catch your stupidity.” You snap at him. So much for being nice. You ignore the jeers coming from Kise’s fans and try to put on a concerned look. Nope. The fans would just have to get used to the constant stream of abuse directed towards Kise.

“So mean.” Kise repeats. Very intelligent. Recovering, he stands up and stares at you, hand on chin. “Hmmmm. Futa, you seem different.”

_Did he notice??_ You stare back at him, trying to keep a straight face. “Do you need something?” You smile nervously, the back of your head is sweating furiously.

“Hmmmm. Must be my imagination then.” Kise waives off the thought. Thank god thinking wasn’t his forte.

“Gather up! Today we’re going to do something different.” Kasamatsu yells. “We’ll warm up as usual, but instead of running through the drills, we’ll be doing one-on-one matches. This will be the last of the tests.” Kasamatsu pauses and sweeps the gym with his fiery gaze. “The managers will be keeping track of individual scores, so do it seriously. Let’s give it our all today as well!”

After a series of various forms of running and stretching, a light layer of sweat has surfaced on your skin. The members gather around the managers to get paired up for their matches, you stand eagerly in the front. Today would be the first day you would get to test your skills against another first stringer. Since the mini matches on the first day, the team had spent the rest of the week on drills and basics. You suspect that they were grading your skills for future reference, which you were okay with, but you were still itching to play some actual basketball with other people.

Amano-senpai, the oldest manager, points you to your section of the court. Kaijo isn’t a national level school for nothing, its gyms all had a full basketball court along with side hoops for smaller games. Your first four matches are overwhelming in your favor. After the first one against a fellow first stringer, you are sure that club has stopped doubting your skills. No one in the team has managed to stop you from breaking past them. Fake, normal dribble, faking a shot into a dribble. No one could read what you would do next.

“Futa-kun, you’re playing against Kise-kun now.” Most would be despairing to have to play against one of the Generation of Miracles, but your face lights up.

You dribble a basketball lightly, waiting for Kise to finish up his game. Absentmindedly you watch Kasamatsu play against Moriyama. Kasamatsu has just scored a basket off of Moriyama, but you can’t really tell who’s in the lead. Both are playing with a grin on their faces, neither is relenting. You wonder if Kasamatsu is the strongest third year, _is that why he’s captain?_ The thought vanishes as Kise’s game finishes up. You beam at him with an excited luminescence on par with his “handsome boy” aura.

“Just, give me a second.” Kise breathes out, holding up a finger.

 


	5. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dejection and a maid cafe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no excuses. I'm sorry.

**Chapter 4**

You close the storage room door behind you and lean against it. The lights are off and the sun has already descended from the sky, thankfully shadowing your face from Kou. Your fists are clenched hard enough that you can feel your nails digging into your palms and you can feel tears welling up in your eyes. Clenching your teeth, you bring the back of your hands up to cover your eyes. Images of the one-on-one against Kise replay in your mind.

You remember the rush of confidence you feel after scoring the first basket. _**You dribbled, faked left and broke through the right, passing Kise easily for a lay up.**_ Your euphoria had been short lived. **_Kise dribbled, faked left and broke through the right, passing you just as easily for a lay up._ ** After seeing your move once, he had made your move his. Although you had been surprised, his mimicking didn’t phase you. _**You raised the ball to your face and as soon as his feet left the ground you immediately dribbled past him to make your actual shot. He had caught up and slapped the ball out of your hand. A second time, a third time.** _ No matter how many times you had passed him, he caught up. By the end of the 10 minute match, Kise had doubled your score 11-23. Even worse, Kise hadn’t even thought anything about it. After the match had ended, he nonchalantly joined the rest of the members who were done with their matches. Not even looking back.

Kise is blessed with speed, power, and a ridiculous ability to copy any move he has seen. There’s no way someone who had just started basketball could have so much in their repertoire, it was inhuman. He bounced back everything you threw at him, better and with more power. Techniques that took a normal person months of practice to master, he would master in a moment. It had been a complete defeat.

“Dammit. Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.” Your cursing crescendos and soon you’re curled up into a ball on the ground yelling into your arms.

“[First]? What’s wrong?” Kou puts his book down and stands up. Flustered, he waves his hands and then finally pats you on the head, just as you had done to him in the past. “[First].” He repeats your name softly and wraps his other arm around you.

The two of you sit there in a suffocating silence. Finally you ask.“Kou, why wasn’t I born as a boy?”

“Why do you want to be a boy?” Kou asks. He already knows the answer.

“If I weren’t a girl, wouldn’t I be stronger? Faster? Taller? You’re so lucky you’re a boy Kou.” You release your frustration spitefully at Kou, feeling a twinge of guilt. _Have I reached my limit?_ Continuing your outburst you rage on. “It’s true isn’t it? Girls can never be as good as boys in a sport. That’s why we’re not allowed to play with boys, that’s why they separate us. You’ll start growing more Kou and you’ll leave me behind too.”

“That’s not true.” He grabs your shoulders tightly. “You may not be as strong or as fast as a boy even if you try as hard as a boy. But you know the girl who puts in double the effort and spends triple the time practicing are way better than boys. Make up for it with your technique and hard work.” He pauses and quickly adds. “It happens in manga all the time.”

“Did you really need to add that last part?” You angle your head so you can see Kou with your left eye.

“Well, it’s true. I definitely can’t beat you at basketball and I bet you can beat most of the boys in Kaijo at it.” Kou shrugs and smiles. “Besides, remember how you would always send me texts complaining about how you had no rivals in middle school? Make Kise your rival then.”

Feeling a surge of energy, you stand up with a newfound goal and a renewed confidence. “You’re right Kou! I’ll just work twice, three times as hard and make Kise recognize me as his rival. Besides if there weren’t strong players out there, basketball wouldn’t be fun!”

“That’s the spirit!” Kou cheers.

“And that means I’ll start training right now.”

“Yeah! Wait, what about our promise?”

You pause and then pretending to continue your previous sentence you grab Kou’s hand and turn to leave the room, “after we eat!”

“Oi, change first.”

\------ Shopping District ---------

The streets aren’t too crowded since it’s a monday afternoon. There are other students who are loitering around here and there. You can see a lot of sports members, evident by their equipment and the after practice tired look.

“You want to go where?”

“Yukihira Baratie Ramen Maid Cafe.”

“The what.” You stare at Kou blankly.

“It’s a new anime inspired cafe that opened recently! Maids and butlers are the servers and the food is themed from anime and manga. It’s said that if they’ve heard of it, it’s on there! From fantasy to sports it’s there!! Doesn’t it sound great??” Kou’s face lights up with excitement, you can see passionate flames burning in his eyes.

You shake your head. “Yeah, it sounds great.”

Kou leads you to a shop on the far corner of the street. The cafe looks normal from afar, generic brown door and red curtains hanging elegantly from the windows. Until you notice the life sized cardboard image of a black haired anime maid right next to the door.

“Oooh, it’s Misaki-Chan~” Futa speeds toward his destined location.

“Look, this is the new maid cafe I read about on the internet! I read on a bulletin that maid cafes are a great place to hit on girls, luckily one opened right by us. Aren’t you excited for the beautiful flowers and -”

“Shut up. This is the important place you wanted to bring us to??”

You immediately recognize the angry voice and you turn towards it. The third year trio, Kasamatsu, Moriyama, and Kobori, are standing right in front of the shop. You turn back to Kou to find him teleported to the front of the shop. _Oh no._

“Why didn’t you go by yourself? Did you really need to bring us with you?” Exasperated, Kasamatsu’s hand is on his face.

“I would’ve been too embarrassed to enter this holy haven by myself.”

“Ahaha... Calm down Kasamatsu.”

“Don’t tell me you’re enjoying this, Kobori?”

“Come on Kasamatsu, it’ll help you with your fear of girls. Which reminds me, Kobori did I tell you about the scene I happened to witness this morning?”

“Shut up Moriyama.” Kasamatsu goes for Moriyama’s head, but he skillfully slips away, used to Kasamatsu’s violence by now. Smiling, but looking troubled, Kobori tries to calm the two of them down. Taking advantage of their tussling, you run up to Kou who is about to open the door to drag him away.

“Kou, come on.” You whisper aggressively. Grabbing his arm you try to pull him around the corner.

“What? I thought we were eating?”

“Oh, isn’t that Futa? Futa!” Moriyama’s voice calls out.

The two of you freeze and Kou immediately looks at you with the ‘is this a basketball related person’ look. You nod very slightly. The two of you turn around and bow with a timing that only twins could possibly achieve.

“Hello.” Kou greets them politely. Kobori and Kasamatsu return the greeting like normal people.

Moriyama grabs your hand and brings them close to his face. “Are you an angel? Because I think I’ve died and gone up to heaven.”

“E-eh?” _What the heck? So lame._

Seeing your weak reaction, Moriyama tries again. “Please, would you give me your phone number? I lost mine.”

“Uh.” _Is he for real?_

“Stop, you’re scaring her.” Kasamatsu grabs Moriyama by the collar and pulls him away from you. He doesn’t look at you.

“How strange, the lines that were guaranteed to work failed...” Moriyama ponders on why he failed.

You try to smile at Moriyama’s antics and turn towards Kou. “Let’s go.” You mouth. He nods, the cafe would have to wait for some other day.

“Shouldn’t you her for her name first?” Kobori, being the sensible person that he is has to drag this along like a normal encounter. “Kobori Koji, nice to meet you.”

“[Full], nice to meet you too.” You introduce yourself extremely grudgingly. _Okay, going through a year of school without running into at least some of the basketball members is unlikely, but really?? Did I really just run into three of the first stringers? There’s no way I’ll be caught though, no one would expect a girl to sneak onto the boys team... But you can never be too safe? This sucks._ All the little people in your brain are freaking the hell out.

Kasamatsu, done scolding Moriyama let’s go of his shirt collar. _I’ve heard that name before._ He thinks.

“Hey, are you guys going to go in, or are you just going to block the the door?” An angry man holding a bag full of anime merchandise is standing behind your group.

“Sorry.” You all apologize. You and Kou try to move away from the door, but Moriyama beckons Kou to enter the store with them. Kou follows along like a fly drunkenly entering a venus fly trap. The temptation is too much for his will power to reject. Before you know it, the five of you were shuffled into the cafe by a maid and sitting at the same table. Strategically sitting away from Moriyama, you sit in between Kobori and Kou.

The store was covered from head to toe with posters, models, and other anime merchandise. You recognize some characters from the little manga that you read. The table is covered with a light blue table cloth spotted with white dots. All the tables in the shop are covered with a different design. Apparently the maids each get to decorate their tables.

The menu is cutely decorated with stickers and chibi images. You open up to see items unheard of to the human race. The names are probably anime references, literally one of the items just says Haruka’s Mackerel. Kou has already departed from the real world. Every now and then he excitedly squeals about a limited edition item on display. Kobori is completely unphased by the whole situation and Moriyama is trying to hit on maids passing by (until a lady dressed in a white chef outfit came out to subtly threaten to kick Moriyama out of the shop).

Kasamatsu-senpai looks extremely uncomfortable. Every time a maid passes behind him, he scoots his seat in. When he opens the menu he also looks completely blown away by the names of the dishes. He looks up, probably to ask for help, makes eye contact with you, and looks back down. You try to stifle a laugh and end up quietly giggling behind the menu.

“Masters, what would you like to order?” Subaru, the maid that had seated you all, asks. She’s dressed in the classic white and black maid outfit complete with a maid cap.

Before Moriyama can hit on the girl, Kou speaks up. “Subaru-chan, can I have a Dress Shrimp Paella and a Magic Love Vanilla Shake?”

You randomly pick a dish from the menu. “Rabbit Ragout sounds good.”

“Ichiraku Ramen for me.”

“Oh fair Venus, plea-” Moriyama stops when the whole table glares at him. He frantically skims the menu. “I’ll take an order of a Maid’s Love.”

“And you master?” The made looks over at Kasamatsu who digs his nose deeper into the menu.

“Napoli Spaghetti...” He mumbles inaudibly.

“I’m sorry master could you repeat that?” Still smiling, the maid moves closer to Kasamatsu who in turn buries deeper into the menu.

“N-napoli Spaghetti.” He yells like a little girl who has just seen a little mouse.

Subaru jots down Kasamatsu’s order and then bows at a beautiful 45 degree angle that Kou wouldn’t stop talking about. She walks off to the cash register to type in the order and then whispers something in a fellow maid’s ear and points discreetly at Kasamatsu. The other maid shakes her head, but giggles along with the other one.

The table of five quietly sits there awkwardly. Kou is still off in his other world, happily breathing in the shop atmosphere. Finally, Kobori breaks the silence. “Futa, so you like anime?”

“Yeah.” Kou skillfully ends the conversation.

“You have good taste Futa.” Moriyama praises. “This place is great.”

“I know right?” Kou’s concise answer causes you to jab him in the side. Tear forming in his eyes he comes back down to earth. _Be polite to the senpai._ You radiate your thoughts at him with a menacing smile.

“Yeah! This place is great! Do you like anime senpai?”

“I never really did get into anime...” Moriyama tries to think of a title.

“I used to watch Dr*gon B*ll all the time. Kasamatsu did too.” Kobori chimes in.

“Anything else? Less mainstream? Do you read light novels?” The forced conversation continues on with Kobori and Moriyama trying to answer Kou’s barrage of questions and then transitions into Kou giving them recommendations.

You and Kasamatsu sit there silently, both with your heads looking in other directions. Occasionally you take a peek at your captain who is trying to look everywhere but at the dozens of females in the shop.

Kou’s conversation slows and then comes to a stop. It looks like Kobori-senpai and Moriyama-senpai can’t keep up with Kou either. Saved from the silence by the food, you watch as Subaru places each dish gently in front of you. For Moriyama, she does a whole maid chant while drawing a heart and LOVE on his omurice.

“It’s so yummy.” Kobori tries to say enthusiastically. It’s true, the food is great. Cute and delicious. But Kasamatsu is radiating an aura of agitation. He scarfs down his food quickly and returns to the state of not knowing where to look until he finally glares at Moriyama for bringing him into such a girl hell.

“Kasamatsu-senpai, are you afraid of girls.” You finally ask the obvious.

“Ah, Kasamatsu is just really, really bad with girls.” Moriyama laughs. “Kasamatsu at this rate, you’re not going to get a girlfriend before you turn into an old man.”

“Actually that might be senpai’s charm point.” Kou says thoughtfully munching on a shrimp. “Cause, you know, senpai looks very stern but is actually weak against girls. It’s a very strong gap moe.”

“A gap what?” Unfamiliar with the term Kasamatsu stares at Kou blankly.

“A gap moe.” Kou repeats. “It’s very attractive, don’t worry.”

“Could it be? Futa, are you possibly well versed in the ways of picking up girls??” Moriyama asks excitedly, finally a topic they could properly talk about.

“Uh, I don’t know about picking up girls, but if it’s winning their hearts then I’ve conquered hundreds before.” Kou boasts, leaving out the fact they they were virtual girls.

“Is that how you met [Last]-san?” Kobori tries to redirect the conversation away from hitting on girls, trying to be considerate towards you.

“Nonononono, we’re definitely not a couple.” You both reject the notion with much aggression.

“So you’re not taken?” Moriyama perks up again.

“My heart is already taken by something else.” You answer promptly, trying to fend off his advances. Finishing off your last piece of ragout with a belligerent chew and swallow motion, you wipe your lips daintily and stand up. “Here’s the money for my food, I should go. I don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable with my presence.” You don’t mean to, but you stare at Kasamatsu before you leave. He’s looking directly at you for the first time out of his own will. His eyebrows are knitted together and it looks like he wants to say something. Your lips twitch upwards, you can’t help but think he looks so out of place in this type of place.

The boys watch you exit the shop, a chorus of “Come back soon master” from the maids and butlers accents your exit.

“Moriyama you creeped her out.’ Kobori mercilessly states.

Outside of the cafe you stretch your arms up into the air. “Aah, finally I can go practice.”


End file.
